Moses de León (
c. 1240 – 1305), known in
Hebrew as Moshe ben Shem-Tov (משה בן שם-טוב די-ליאון), was a
Spanishrabbi and
Kabbalist who first publicized the
Zohar. Modern scholars believe the Zohar is his own work, despite his claim that he took traditions going back to
Shimon bar Yochai and committed them to writing. His other works include Sefer ha-Rimon, written in Hebrew, and hundreds of pseudepigraphic responsa, commentaries, and Kabbalistic tracts which he falsely attributed to earlier authorities.[1]
Life
Moses de León was born in
León,
Kingdom of León in modern day Spain, then united with the
Crown of Castile.[2] He might have been born in
Guadalajara and his surname, then, comes from his father, Shem-Tov de León. He spent 30 years in Guadalajara and
Valladolid before moving to
Ávila, where he spent the rest of his life. Moses de León died at
Arévalo in 1305 while returning to his home.
References
^See Elliot R. Wolfson, “Hai Gaon’s Letter and Commentary on Aleynu: Further Evidence of Moses de León’s Pseudepigraphic Activity,” JQR 81 (1991), pp. 365-409 and the sources he cites; also the sources cited by Shmuel Glick, Eshnav le-Sifrut ha-Teshuvot (New York, 2012), pp. 237-238.